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Commentary: Jax take their shot at Portland

Saturday, December 3, 2005
NICK DASCHEL Columbian staff writer

Perhaps you've heard of the Portland Pride. Or maybe you haven't.

Or the Portland Fire. The Storm. The Thunder. The Timbers, Part I. The Breakers. The Power. The Rage. The Forest Dragons.

They're part of Portland-Vancouver's professional sports history. They were here, and soon, they were history.

Indoor football. Indoor soccer. Outdoor soccer. Women's basketball. Pro football. Roller hockey.

All tried, all failed.

Even minor league baseball has had a rocky go of it locally.

Welcome to Portland-Vancouver, America's wasteland for wannabe professional sports.

Now, it's not all the local market's fault. Unstable ownership and league problems have caused a number of Portland sports franchises to flop.

Some day, someone is going to bring the right mix of interesting sport and league stability to Portland-Vancouver and grow roots. It hasn't happened since the 1970s, when pro basketball's Trail Blazers and junior hockey's Winter Hawks planted themselves in the market.

Maybe that sport is indoor lacrosse. The Portland LumberJax of the National Lacrosse League are the latest franchise to take a crack at your time and wallet.

Maybe is all a sane person could predict, given Portland-Vancouver's finicky past and a sport not exactly on the typical sports fans' front burner.

More than 10,000 turned out Thursday night in the Rose Garden for a freebie look at Lumberjax during a team scrimmage. When they weren't standing in long lines for dollar hot dogs and soda, they seemed to be entertained by the fast-paced game, albeit one with a few warts.